The invention relates to a gas accumulation detection and ventilation system for a gas turbine enclosure.
A conventional gas turbine system includes a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine. In a conventional gas turbine system, compressed air is provided from the compressor to the combustor. The air entering the combustor is mixed with fuel and combusted. Hot gases of combustion flow from the combustor to the turbine to drive the gas turbine system and generate power.
Gas turbines are generally housed in enclosures, which include various features for protecting and maintaining the systems. A typical prior art enclosure includes a roof or top wall bolted to four sidewalls about the periphery of the roof with a plurality of nut/bolt fasteners. The roof and sidewalls thus form a generally hollow, rectangular enclosure.
Heavier gas fuel for gas turbines needs special consideration because of safety concerns as heavier gas fuels, such as propane, butane, etc. may accumulate on the floor of the gas turbine enclosure. The gas turbine includes many pipes and connections for delivering fuel to the gas turbine, resulting in potential leak points within the enclosure.
Existing ventilation systems create airflow through the gas turbine enclosure, but the systems typically do not focus inlet flow on the enclosure floor nor do they provide for sufficient ventilation to extract heavier fuels. This is because natural gas is slightly lighter than air, and thus tends to buoyance up. Existing systems include a sensor or plural sensors in an air exhaust duct to detect fuel molecules in the air exhaust. If a leakage is detected by the sensors, the gas turbine control system will alarm or trip the machine shut down, depending on the level of fuel gas leakage.
It would be desirable to detect leak accumulation adjacent the floor of a gas turbine and to configure a more effective ventilation system.